if you have a daughter teach her that it is not her responsibility to go get the popcorn for every man in the bleachers (not even if they let her keep the change). teach her that this is not the way to garner attention. that it is not her job to make sure every dad… Read More
POEM: courage to love
give me an old and rugged love one that blooms out of withered and brittle leaves one that dares to blossom even after it has seen the ravages of winter give me the love that has known heartache, loss, and sorrow and still chooses to cling to a buoyant and persistent hope one that has… Read More
POEM: Happiness Is.
‘Happiness is the sunroof open on a warm spring day it’s a home run flying straight into a summer sunset it is the glimpse of a shooting star on a clear night’s sky Happiness is an unexpected hug from a joyous child it’s a campfire surrounded by thoughtful friends it is a sip of champagne… Read More
LITURGY: Prayer at Emmaus.
God of the lakeshore — feed us. God of the doubters — reassure us. God of the road home — reveal yourself to us. God of the Spirit unleashed — advocate for us. And God of the empty tomb — remind us that since the beginning you have called the women, the broken, the disenfranchised… Read More
POEM: What it means to say “No Justice, No Peace”
I have buried too many of my son’s mentors to believe this world could ever be just. until black men can make it past age twenty-five we cannot claim that the world is fair. until then, we must admit the world is designed to break them. and there is no justice in that. Mothers are… Read More
A Good Friday Prayer for 2021.
No angry mobs now, Holy God, Screaming “crucify!” It is not anger, but distress, we see in your faces, the faces that we watch over and over and over again. Distress because you stand and bear witness to the suffering that makes us turn away. We turn the channel, put off the screen, say we… Read More
poem: A Benediction for Jelani
A light that bright radiates the Holy. Not meant for earthly realms A light that bright Shines beyond eternity. And now returning to the stellate sun We remain basking in luminous presence Forever changed By a light that bright. And having glimpsed such A brilliant fire Let us turn now To God, and to one… Read More
POEM: An Open Letter to the Coach Who Cares
You noticed, and you named it. Over the season, he started to lose his spark. I am profoundly grateful that you noticed the change. You even encouraged him… “if basketball is not your thing, maybe something else…” You had no way to know, it’s not about the game. It’s about learning how to live… Read More
BLOG: Illuminating a Word, Made Flesh.
… what has come into being was life, and the life was the true enlightenment of all people… Read More
POEM: Esau in Midrash for 2020
Imagine if you will, America as a woman, wife in barren pose. Within her there grows, a future. Two nations in one womb. Brothers divided. Birthed together in conflict. The stronger pulled back by the younger’s jealousy. Esau made for the labor of the field, Jacob for the quiet tents. Brute strength plotted against a… Read More
poem: THE INVISIBLE CLOAK
I cloak my son in whiteness create the shield whenever I can equating… mistaking… invisible with invincible somehow believing I can save him from history disguised as destiny. I cloak my son in whiteness it seems the only means I have for safeguarding his protection one more year, or month, or hour until that moment… Read More
quote: HEALING
“It’s becoming uncomfortable.” Read More
The Gates of Hope
This poem, by Victoria Safford, is speaking to my heart today. The Gates of Hope:Our mission is to plant ourselves at the gates of Hope—Not the prudent gates of Optimism,Which are somewhat narrower.Not the stalwart, boring gates of Common Sense;Nor the strident gates of Self-Righteousness,Which creak on shrill and angry hinges(People cannot hear us there;… Read More
poem: REMEMBERING
what I remember most is the ash. the way that brilliant blue sky of the morning turned cloudy with the ashes that floated down like the snowflakes of a quiet storm, and drifted into the corners of the windows and doorways. those drifts piled up silently, untouched for days, weeks. everytime I looked out the… Read More
POEM: A letter to David, On Wedding Planning
TO DAVID: I want you to know, I see the questions that you have. The ones that sit right behind the furor in your brow, the ones you keep to yourself, even as you chose the most traditional of vows. And I know, you will keep these questions inside you, tucked behind probing eyes because you do… Read More
SYNOD SCHOOL, Monday.
This week I have the privilege of teaching a course called “Artmaking: The Spiritual Practice of Creation.” Each day we will experiment with 2 different art expressions. Today, it was found poetry thru altered books and collage poetry. Here are some of the amazing results:
poem: THE WAY OF THE HEART
the way of the heart is not the path that the world prescribes is not the even, gentle course of clearly defined lines linear, concentric, symmetric. the way of the heart is not a journey with a bread-crumbled trail where the way in, leads you out again. the way of the heart is the moment… Read More
poem: A DOULA’S PRAYER
A DOULA’S PRAYER o tender and loving god hold us gently as we pray we – the healers, the life bearers, the doulas – the ones who hold up creation as it breaks through in the very act of birth for we are the ones who stand in the liminal spaces the ones holding divine… Read More
Cathy Mia Kolwey 